ThE WiZaRd oF oZ
by Rampion
Summary: All the Scarecrow ever wanted was a brain so he could think again. All the Tin man ever wanted was a Heart so she could love again. All the lion ever wanted was the courage, so he could finally be brave. Thorne. Cinder. Jacin. On the yellow brick road to find their destinies, and who they truly are deep inside. Features Cresswell, Kainder, Wincin.
1. All the Tin Man ever wanted was a Heart

**Hello, thank you so much for reading this fanfic, I am so helplessly in love with the Lunar Chronicles and am in major denial this takes place after Winter, and there are spoilers. I love all the characters more than life, and I hope you enjoy this, comments would be appreciated and I will update soon, Love you all! I'm aware that this story starts out kind of long and tedious, but don't worry, the action will begin soon.**

 **That being said I do not own any of the characters and this beautiful series was not written by me, but the fabulous Marissa Meyer.**

 **Thanks All of you!**

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 _All the Tin Man Ever Wanted was a Heart so he Could Love Again_

Cinder pressed her forehead against the glass window that revealed the tips of earth passing below them. Fog began to form on the screen, and she stepped even closer, pressing her body against the wall in an effort to see more of the planet laid out before her. The frame around the window was encased with gold, and carved with intricate designs that sparkled and gleamed in the sunlight that peeked over earth. It really was a beautiful spaceship, none less beautiful on the interior than the rooms back in the palace of Artemisia. Pale salmon wallpaper danced through the room with soft cream colored jewels that patterned the walls. There was a bed in the center of the room that was fitted with so much material, it could be sewn into a hundred dresses each one a different color and design.

Even the floor was dressed up, wearing a thick creamy carpet that cinder had found herself pressing her toes into on numerous occasions. She enjoyed the plush feeling of the soft floor on her skin, but no matter how hard she tried, whenever she found herself surrounded by these luxuries, she couldn't get the picture of slave labor in the outer sectors out of her mind. She imagined hungry men carving a thousand designs into the gold frame around the window. She imagined tired women, sewing the sheets that draped around her pristine bed. She even imagined children washing and scrubbing the carpet of stains. All luxuries she enjoyed, at a high cost. Of course, she knew that slave labor was no longer happening with Levana overthrown, but she still felt a pang of guilt every time she crawled into her bed sheets. Many Laborers were even dead because of the harsh conditions they were put under, and cinder knew from experience that every detail was probably examined and perfected before it had been sent to the palace. If something was wrong, the creator could suffer consequences as harsh as public lashings or suffer the loss of food.

Cinder let her gaze travel around the room, wondering how many people had been physically hurt because they had messed up a single detail in their work.

Off in one corner of her room there was a desk made out of a dark wood that she didn't recognize. It was littered with a thousand drawers, even when she only filled up one of them with a dirty grey hooded sweatshirt and a pair of cargo pants. The only pair she had since they left the rampion so many months ago.

She had practically begged the seamstress to make her a pair of pants along with her exquisite dress that she would wear to the annual peace festival, and she still had yet to wear the pants, but was saving them for a special occasion which included all of her friends and a trip on the rampion. Now she itched to throw off this thick layered prink-frilled dress and slip into something more comfortable, but she knew that many of Luna's most prestigious diplomats were on this ship with her, headed to the eastern commonwealth to represent Luna at the ball, and she didn't want to seem... More casual than she already was. Even if she spent most of the time in her room.

After all, they never ceased to look their best whenever she was in their presence, and the least she could do was repay the favor. After the revolution, people had begun giving her more respect than she had in her entire life, bowing whenever she looked in their direction, giving her gifts, and even, sometimes placing kisses on her cheek while eyes filled with thankfulness. Of course these were the people from the outer sectors who had suffered the wrath of Levana the most, the lunars closest to Artemisia only gave her glares and the occasional glob of spit aimed in her direction. They hadn't taken well to Levana's rule coming to a close. They were used to being spoiled by her majesty, and now, without those luxuries, they were spiteful and rebellious. The worst of them were thrown into prison for treason, and when that happened, a few families from the outer sectors were able to have a permanent change of scenery, but Cinder was working hard to ensure that the pain and suffering was over. For good.

She silently wondered if the people of earth would treat her with the same respect, and once again, Cinder gazed out of the window, willing time to speed up, while at the same time, begging it to slow down. Her heart hiccupped as she noticed the increasing speed of the ship, the growing size of earth beneath her. Her eyes landed on a single spot on the horizon, letting herself imagine what it would be like to step onto soil again. She was almost used to moon rock and dust, but her thoughts were centered on the feeling of the ground, earthen ground. It was even pretty to look at, and she felt envious for a single moment as she memorized the texture of the land. From this far away, it all looked perfect. Cinder noted how the cream colored clouds swirled against the royal blue ocean, and how, the glittering cities twinkled in the dark void of space.

As they descended closer, she could make out details in the brown earth, and she began to see mountains, hints of vegetation, and the snake of a line, slithering through the eastern commonwealth. She examined it once more, and realized, with a start, that it was the Great Wall of China. She smiled, and a wave of giddiness crashed over her. She was going home. And this time, without Pearl, or Adri, who were busy selling prototypes for bio electrical spine implants to world leaders. Cinder would finally face this planet, this earth as not a dejected, lonely cyborg, but as a queen, the queen of Luna. This news sent a new wave of anticipation and adrenaline pumping through her veins.

Of course there was going to be pain at seeing her own home, where she had spent her life being tortured by Adri and Pearl, and a single thought of Peony made her gasp with the reopening of an old wound. Yes this was a place full of hatred and misery, but every time she thought of the Eastern commonwealth, it brought- not thoughts of revenge- but of a new start, a rebirth of memories and adventures. She was eager to visit again, excited.

She looked at earth again, but something nagged her in the back of her mind. A small detail that always made her stomach churn, and her heart flip. Sure, she was more than ecstatic to be returning, but going back meant facing someone that she was not ready to face again. His face began to slice through her thoughts and claw at her insides, until she was forced to think about him (much against her will). His messy brown hair. His chocolate brown eyes. His lips that had been admired by every girl in the commonwealth a thousand times.

Him. Kai.

And she had not talked to him in over 3 months. Of course there had been the occasional comm, but even they had fizzled to a stop, and their conversations were usually arguments, stirred by their disagreements on how both of them ruled their countries. Their last fight had been about getting married. It had been on her birthday, her seventeenth birthday.

He had called her on her port seven times before she had time to take a break from the party Iko had thrown for her and look at her messages. She glanced at the clock in her chambers, and then regretted it. She had set the clock to Eastern Commonwealth time to feel more like home, and even though she felt bad calling him back at three in the morning, she soon got over her guilt and rested the pad of her finger on the contact that read his name.

 _Calling His Majesticness who I am very much in love with_

Her screen echoed at her. She made a mental note to keep her port screen far away from Thorne the next time he visited. He had also changed his own contact to "The sexiest man alive and you know it Cinder". Yep, she thought to herself, he's never touching my stuff again. Jumping onto her messy, rustled bed, she lay with her chest hugging the mattress, and propped her face up with her elbows. She then rested the port on the pillows in front of her and awaited her emperor.

The screen stayed blank for the count of seventeen seconds as the tiny world icon spun in the right corner of the port. When his face finally appeared on the screen, she gasped for air, unaware that she had been holding her breath. The room around him was black and his face was illuminated with an unearthly pallor that made exhaustion even more apparent in his face. Cinder giggled as she examined his messy, messy hair that seemed even more frazzled since he had just woken up.

"Good morning," she tried, laughing at his sudden yawn that made his cheeks wrinkle in the cutest places. He fell back into his pillow with a sigh, and rolled his eyes.

"Good morning Cinder," he finally said, smiling groggily at her.

"I'm sorry it's early," she gushed "I finally got a break from being held hostage at Iko's party, and… I wanted to talk to you," she smiled again, not wanting his face to disappear before she could memorize it. His eyes suddenly flashed open and a look of guilt spread across his face.

"Oh, stars Cinder, I'm so sorry I couldn't make it to your birthday, I'm sorry, Iko tried to get me to come but I had a meeting that had been planned for a long time, and I just couldn't miss it," He seemed frustrated with his own words, and suddenly she felt bad for calling him when he wasn't even able to collect his thoughts. She played with a loose string from the quilt on her bed, twisting it around her fingers.

"It's ok," she said, even though she was not ok with his absence. "Iko told me that you couldn't come and I… I understand." She tried to smile to cover her sadness, but it turned into more of a cringe. He suddenly perked up, startling her.

"You got my present right? I know it was short notice, but I discovered it somewhere hidden where Torin thought I couldn't find it, espionage is obviously my specialty." His grin turned lopsided and Cinder found it hard to stay mad at him for not coming.

"Yes," she said "I was waiting to open it so you could be there, but I guess this is good enough," she pushed herself up from the bed and walked to where Kai's present sat unopened in her room, smiling at the lumpy wrapping paper that made her thoughts flicker to a certain pair of gloves she had once received. The box she now held in front of her was big, and heavier than she expected, causing her to lean to push it onto her bed. She maneuvered around it and then sat cross legged behind the box so he could still see her, then she began to gently remove the paper that glittered in the dim light of her chambers. Kai's confidence grew with each of the piece of wrapping paper that landed on her bed until she reached a box in the center. It fell apart easily, and then she was reaching her hand in and pulling out an all too familiar grey sweat shirt. Her heart hiccupped and she smiled mischievously at the port screen that was full of relief and a bit of cockiness. She pressed it to her face, smelling his soap that had once made her dizzy with euphoria. It still did.

"There's something else in there too," Kai said, his nerves were evident on every angle of his face, making Cinder suspicious. Her hand landed on a small square box, and the smile vanished from her face, panic coursing through her body. Her hands were shaking as she slowly brought the box from the darkness of its cardboard prison.

It was a simple box, one that was made of wood and had small gold hinges that shined slowly when she twisted it around. Her eyes finally reached the latch, and her eyebrows drew together in concern because she knew exactly what was in this box, exactly what this meant. It felt like ages as she sat there examining the box, twisting it around in her fingers, such a small little box she thought, for such a big thing, her mind turned back to when Levana was on the other side of this box, when Levana was going to be married soon, back when Cinder was still a helpless and vulnerable cyborg. She pressed the pad of her finger on the indent in the wood, and popped it open.

The ring was sleeping in a dark velvet that made it even more beautiful, though like the box, it was simple. Just a band of gold that would slip perfectly around her cyborg finger. A voice cut through her thoughts, ripping her attention away from the box.

"Queen Selene Channary Blackburn, I, Emperor Kaito of the Eastern commonwealth, would like to ask your hand in marriage," his face was pressed with so much confidence that her heart flipped a hundred times. Cinder just sat there with her face frozen in shock and her mind went blank with a million thoughts racing through her head.

She remembered that moment now as she stared out sadly into the void of space, pretending that nothing was wrong, that nothing had dissolved in their relationship that day that she had not said no. But she had. And now every nerve inside of her sizzled in worry.

Now he was worried, and furious, and heartbroken, and she had no other reason than her own selfishness and worry to blame.

Selfishness because she wanted their relationship to be something other than a diplomatic agreement, a sign of alliance. She wanted it to be what they had on the rampion, but she knew that once she began plotting out a marriage alliance, it would have to be displayed that way, as a symbolic wedding, and not one out of love. She wasn't sure she was ready for that. For the press conferences that displayed their marriage for the whole world to see. She wanted their relationship private, confined, but the lunar queen getting married to the emperor of the eastern commonwealth would draw a lot of unwanted attention.

Her worry also held her back. She wasn't exactly sure that what they had had on the rampion was real. She had long forgotten the conversations that they had on the ship, and though she could recall their kisses, it felt like a dream, too fragile to shatter. She had often asked herself what Kai found attractive in her, and someday, if he would ask himself the same question.

She was scared that if she talked to him, she would say something that would make their relationship unravel, so she found it easier to let the days slip by without answering his comms. Found it easier to forget him.

But now she couldn't, because she was going to face him in exactly

Four hours and thirty seven minutes

The clock in her brain told her. She was going to see him -talk to him, dance with him at the annual peace festival. She wasn't sure that she could handle that when the very thought of him made her central processor fizzle and pop with nerves.

She wrung her hands and tried to push into them all of the building energy that plagued her.

Someone cleared their throat behind her, shattering her peace and quiet. She whirled around, facing her personal guard; Kinney who, with evident disdain told her that her "android friend" was waiting outside her room.

Cinder smiled with relief, glad for the distraction, and glad that it was Iko. She slowly backed away from the wall and composed her features, hiding her worried expressions with a smile reserved only for her android.

A second later she burst into the room, batting away Kinney who had been standing in the doorway moments earlier. "Cinder!" She said rushing over to the window where Cinder was still positioned.

"I have decided that it would be appropriate, and also very cute, if you wore this when we arrived." Iko held up a short sun dress that cinder noticed for the first time. She guessed it would only come down to about mid-thigh, and reveal everything underneath, including her metal leg. "Kai will probably think it's a bit flashy, but sexy none the less," Iko continued, and cinder ran her metal hand through her hair.

"Iko, that's sweet and all, but..." She paused, rewording her excuses in her mind. "It's a little... Revealing, I mean, the people of the world are going to have to get used to this whole cyborg/queen of the moon thing, I'm not sure that showing up on one of the most prejudice country's doorstep and flashing a metal leg will be the greatest way to create acceptance towards this whole cyborg laws movement thing," Iko blinked once and said,

"Trust me, the people will love it," before getting to work and throwing the dress over cinder's head. She groaned, fighting the instinct to shrug Iko off of her, but despite her struggles, she moved quickly and had soon stepped back to examine her work.

Cinder glanced down at the dress and realized that it was prettier than she had originally thought. It was white with little pale pink flowers that bloomed around the bodice. The bottom was hemmed with a white lace that fell around her like water. The neckline fell at just the right length. Cinder smiled and then glanced at Iko.

"I like this much better that the gowns in Artemisia."

"And here you are complaining about cyborg opposition." Iko refuted. Cinder rolled her eyes. "Now, we have about two hours left, so we should probably start working on your hair."


	2. The Tornado ripped her away fromher love

**Hey Guys I'm back! Soo excited for the release of this Chapter, I have been working on it FOREVER, that being said, I am so excited to continue posting. So you have a date to anticipate, the next chapter will be coming out on Wednesday of next week, but it is going to get INTENSE, so pumped for Thorne's POV. Muahaha time to start destroying relationships, but don't worry, this will all work out, trust me. HOPE YOU ENJOY this chapter my beautiful readers and followers, I'm really liking the idea of The Wizard of Oz, so I'll see where this takes me. Thank you all, don't forget to comment and post your reviews! Have a wonderful week!**

 **Thanks for reading**

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Cress stood with her body pressed against a large wooden crate, shivering in the frigid air. She would much rather be in the ship where there was warm air and mugs of hot chocolate to warm them up, but no, she remained standing in the middle of Siberia, distributing letimosis antidotes to the smallest town she had ever seen. Sure, it was a beautiful place, but in the middle of winter, it seemed more likely to lash out on you then take your breath away with the stunning snow and rosy cheeks. To make matters worse, she was only wearing a thin dress that reached her ankles and elbows.

She had desperately wished that finding a coat had been her priority in the last town they had visited, but it had been the farthest thing from her thoughts. That town had been in Australia where the sun seemed to forget that there was even such thing as winter. Here, it remembered.

Cress closed her eyes, picturing herself an hour from then, flying across the world to New Beijing palace where she would be reacquainted with Cinder, Kai, Iko, Winter, and Jacin. They would then enjoy a week to themselves in the palace, and attend the annual peace ball. But most of all, she couldn't wait to see him. Who had told her that he loved her, who had promised they would be together after the revolution, but they weren't. It had been a lie, well sort of a lie, Thorne had no idea that when he had proposed the idea of her staying with him on the rampion that there wasn't really a chance that she would actually stay with him, and that he instead, would be heading back and forth from Luna to Earth, using the enormous amount of space in his 214 class Rampion spaceship to store the antidote, while she was plucked from Thorne's grasp to be placed on the committee that actually distributed it. It had almost crushed her heart to see him leave so soon after they had just been reunited, but he didn't seem too irked, considering that the team he got stuck with was full of beautiful lunar women that would show him around, and help him with his work. Of course by the time all of the women had boarded, there was no room aboard for Cress.

Cinder had also told her that she would do more good if she wasn't with Thorne, seeing as neither of them knew their way to the Labs on Luna, and also, she wouldn't be a distraction for Thorne to get carried away while he was on the mission. Cress huffed, his new acquaintances would probably be more of a distraction than she had ever been in her entire life, and it had taken every ounce of self-control to keep herself from hurling herself at those gorgeous, flirtatious lunar girls who, even without glamour, had the most beautiful clothes, and heart shaped faces, and hair that fell like a waterfalls around their bodies. She even knew that they all were more than likely to fall in love with her captain, especially when she had so easily fallen for it before. Yes, even when they got back together, she was sure that he would have forgotten all about her.

And fallen for Savanna, or Cassidy, or… Vivian, who she could tell that Thorne was already claiming as his own… with her beautiful brown hair and thick lashes, and her tan skin, and her tall legs. She began to seethe and her jaw locked in frustration. He was off traveling the world with pretty females who had no problem displaying their bodies for the single, bad boy criminal who had probably neglected to mention the fact that someone was already very much in love with him. Her head pounded on the crate next to her.

Thorne was somewhere without her, and she was stuck here, passing out these small vials in a desolate wasteland that made frost form on her pale skin.

To be fair, the town was very beautiful. The houses were all lined up perfectly and made of a dark wood that cress couldn't name. The gentle snow covered every surface (including the people) and there was something about it that made cress want to stare at it forever. The pristine white that glittered with the sparkle of a million crystals, and sometimes hinted at different colors if the sun hit it just right. Of course she had seen snow in pictures before, but it was different up close, cleaner, and pearlier white than any picture from a satellite could show her. And when she breathed out, oh when she breathed out... Wolf had laughed at her initial response to jump away from the cloud that billowed from her mouth, but she soon learned that "seeing your breath" as he called it, was nothing to be afraid of, especially when it meant she was still breathing. Afterwards, she cautiously tested her exhale once more before making herself lightheaded by examining how large she could make the cloud be.

The excitement of snow was quick to wear off though, leaving her with adrenaline filled memories and the feeling that her fingers were slowly turning into icicles. It was at times like these that Cress found it difficult to think of anything other than the fact that her body was made up of 60% water. Which went without saying that water froze at 32° Fahrenheit. And she was more than positive that the current temperature was under 32° Fahrenheit.

Cress began to wander in and out of daydreams to keep her mind from worrying about frozen limbs.

She was a net drama actress, and all of these people were her fans, lined up to receive her autograph.

She was a princess of an icy kingdom, wearing a beautiful white dress that was made from the sparkling fabric of snow, and the threads of icicles.

She was a dark wood tree that stood tall and looked down on the people in front of her with wisdom and years of knowledge, but the dreams were withering and every time she thought that she had slipped out of painful reality, she was jerked back in by the red, pudgy hands that demanded more of the antidote.

To Cresses right, she could hear scarlet and wolf giving out the antidote to townspeople as well, and all of a sudden, she felt a large hand on her shoulder, pulling her away from the relentless people. She felt a change of climate, as she realized that she was being drawn back into the sanctuary of the ship. It was significantly less cold in there, and she immediately noticed the difference where every time she took in a breath, it didn't feel like she was swallowing shards of ice that ripped at her vocal cords and slashed down her windpipe. Her breathing relaxed and she whirled around to see the hero who had pulled her from the freezing cold.

She honestly was not surprised that it was wolf who was pulling off his hoodie and setting it down over cresses shoulders. Her heart hiccupped in her throat, and her thoughts immediately turned to Thorne, who would have been in wolf's position right now, heroically handing cress his jacket if it wasn't for the fact that he was millions of miles away from her.

 _You need to stop thinking about him. He isn't here, you're only making it more painful for yourself_

She thought silently

Wolf nudged the jacket into her grip, bringing her back to reality. Her first thought was to deny the jacket, and tell him that he needed it for himself, but he pressed it back into her hands and argued that she was going to get frostbite if she didn't put it on. She finally accepted the gift easier than she had planned.

"Thank you wolf," she said and then turned to go back outside, but wolf stopped her, inhaling deeply, he gave her a pitiful look,

"I smell your jealousy and nerves, you scent tells me that you're drowning in doubt as well. What has Thorne done this time," he asked nonchalantly. His question caught her off guard, and it took her a second to remember how to speak.

"Nothing," she stammered, trying to push past his arm that had blockaded her in, but as soon as she said it, tears began to pool in her eyes, much against her will, and leak across her face until they caressed down her chin and dropped onto the ground,"

Wolf's voice had grown soft, "you can't try to bottle up all of that energy inside, it's not healthy, you could hurt yourself by trying to hide from the inevitable, and talking about it will make you feel a lot better,"

She huffed "as if you know about releasing feelings, you were stuck up on the rampion for a whole month without scarlet, and you spent most of your time moping around and staying isolated from the rest of the group." She lashed, and, expecting him to be offended, she was surprised when he laughed out of amusement, causing her to feel even more frustrated that every time she got upset, people saw it as a joke.

"Since when did you become so feisty?" He chuckled, and she crossed her arms in defiance, but when she tried to exit, his arm still stood immovable in front of her.

"I'm fine, really, and I don't want to talk about it,"

"Come on Cress, I know enough about you to tell when someone has hurt you, I think I can help, don't you want to talk?"

Cress wiped at the tears, pleading that they would stop before she could make even more of a fool out of herself.

"No, I don't think I can tell you, or put it into words, i guess I'm just frustrated," her voice was becoming smaller, weaker, threatening to crack.

"You can tell me, I just don't want to see you get hurt." He said wrapping her into his embrace.

Cress bit her lip and her sob came out as a cracked and broken squeak that did little more than raise a blush to her face. More tears began to fall and all she could do was watch them dancing as they slipped through the air, landing with a splat on the metal interior of the ship's frame.

"Oh wolf," she sobbed, resigned. She pressed a hand against her mouth. No, she would not cry. She would be strong, be a hero. Willing the lakes to dry up, the water flow began to slowly subside. She composed herself, collecting her thoughts. Took a deep breath. And then let her feelings fly free from the cage in her heart.

"I'm not like the other girls he has loved before, I'm not as pretty, or tall, or flirtatious, and I'm just… Just cress. And now he's on his ship filled with beautiful lunars who I think have more intentions than distributing the plague antidote. I just don't know what to do, I obviously am some sort of naive child to him that doesn't understand what love is, but more than that, I know what loyalty is, and he has none of that." She took a deep breath and the continued, shoving her anger and resentment, and her frustration into her words "Wolf, I'm scared that he won't love me as much as I love him, but how many times can a person say I love you before it becomes a meaningless phrase? Because I know he has told a lot of girls that he loved them, so who am I to him? Just another number to add to the toss outs and throw always? Because that's how he treats me," she concluded her rant, shoving her frustration into her words and filling them with passion and truth, because for the first time in her life, she felt like she could confide in him, and he would listen to her. And she could go on and on about her feelings, and he would understand, he would help her get through this. He would help her. He had to, because she had just told him one of her biggest secrets.

Remembering that she had an audience, she turned back to look at wolf, he seemed almost surprised that such a small, tiny girl could be filled with such feelings as she had just expressed. And then, he looked angry at Thorne, like he might have a talk with him once they were all back together.

It wasn't a surprise, ever since they had begun delivering the antidote, wolf had been more protective around her, and she was beginning to see the dominance in his lovable wolf side every time he kissed scarlet, or talked to Cress, his overprotective nature made him charming in a different way than Kai was charming, or Thorne was charming. It was sweet and determined, and somehow this information made cress forget about the awful monster and animal that he could be if he wanted.

"I understand, but things will get better, sometimes relationships need a lot of work and molding for you two to entirely trust each other. Just give it time, everyone can tell that Thorne is a complete idiot, but he has enough brains to recognize that he has to play his part too. Or, if he doesn't shape up, I'll see what I can do to persuade him," he pulled her into another hug, and cress was surprised when it didn't feel forced. She was glad that someone knew what she was going through, even if it was only a small thing that meant the world to her. He motioned with his hand that she should exit the small ship first, and followed close behind.

The effects of the hoodie were instantaneous, sending warmth through her body, and she was finally able to look down to examine the hoodie for the first time. It was about ten sizes too big, and it fell to her mid-calf, covering her dress. It was a dark shade of blue, and she kind of liked the way it fell around her, cocooning her in its warmth. It smelled like tomatoes, and vaguely of scarlet, if she had the right angle. Wolf just shrugged.

"It doesn't exactly fit me right," he said and cress let out a laugh

"Me neither," she said patting him on the chest, "it's nice though, it will keep me warm." She gave him one last smile before walking out to continue passing out the antidote.

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 **There, what do you think? Post your thoughts, ideas, other in the comments below! Also because neither of us can wait for Wednesday, I'm giving you a spoiler... Have fun with this, I am so desperately in love with Thorne, and no I'm not going to destroy Creswell**

 **SPOILER: Thorne had way too much to drink. Judging from the spouts of giggles and the skimpy looks they were giving him, he assumed that "his girls" as he had come to call them had too much to drink as well, but even then, knowing it was a mistake, he tipped the champagne bottle up to his lips to wash down the previous drink of whiskey that was still sending fizzles of laughter down his throat. When he had first been introduced to his crew, his first thought had been to keep himself far away from these overly attractive lunar women, but that was when Cress had been standing there by his side.**

 **But now, now Cress was not by his side. She wasn't even at the top of Thorne's list of most important people to remember, outshined by Savanna, and Cassidy, and... Spades Vivian's coppery eyes were sparkling in the bright lights of the Rampion's dining room, and he gazed up at her, trying to remember his name. She scooted closer, and his eyebrows shot up in anticipation.**

 **She grabbed the bottle out of his grasp and maneuvered his hand to wrap around her waist. And then, they were slow dancing to the music, music that he had downloaded for an occasion such as this. And she was nudging his nose to the side as she leaned in and gave him the most passionate kiss he had ever received in his entire life. And she was slowly twisting her fingers in the hair at the base of his neck, and he had his hands buried in her beautiful long brown hair. And they danced while she pressed him into the back counter and fell deeper into his embrace.**

 **But something was wrong. Something that nagged at his brain until he was forced to recede from their tangled bodies and slowly back away. Because at times like these, Thorne really wished that he had a brain.**


	3. The Wicked Witch

**Hey guys! Ok well I'm sorry I haven't posted in a while, but I hope you really like this chapter. Muahhahahahahah, time to let the destruction of otps begin! First, before I get all the haters hating, I don't think I'm going to completely ruin cresswell, at least not yet, and relax it's gonna be some good drama that goes down, also ok I understand if you're really confused by the wiz of oz theme, it will become more clear as the story progresses, and finally, I'm gonna try to post Wednesdays or Fridays, and it may not be every week, but at least now you have dates to look forward to. The story may start out really slow, and I truly understand why there are a lack of readers, but it's going to get souper great (yes I spelled super, souper on purpose.) but please stay with me. The wicked witch is coming.**

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Thorne had way too much to drink. Judging from the spouts of giggles and the skimpy looks they were giving him, he assumed that "his girls" as he had come to call them had too much to drink as well, but even then, knowing it was a mistake with his conscience and liver begging him to stop, he tipped the champagne bottle up to his lips to wash down the previous drink of whiskey that was still sending fizzles of laughter down his throat. He couldn't help the wave of giddiness that followed, because, soon, he would be entering earth's atmosphere and heading to the Eastern Commonwealth where he would finally see his friends again. Finally. After three long months, and thousands of miles difference, he would be with them again, if only for a few days. But the idea those few days meant everything to him. And better yet, his new crew would be joining him as well.

When he had first been introduced to his new delivery crew, which consisted of three lunar girls and one man named Beckett, his first thought had been to keep himself far away from these attractive women, but that was when Cress had been standing there by his side. And despite his attempts to make it seem as though Cress and him were… something (even though nothing had been officially established and he wouldn't see her again until the annual peace festival), the girls looked as though they would have a hard time keeping their hands off him. He couldn't help his overly attractive personality. Or looks.

The first girl, Savanna, was a tall, flawlessly tan woman with thick sparkly gold hair that fell down passed her hips and was braided intricately to one side of her head, shining with glitter and sparkles. She had been wearing grey cargo pants, and a T shirt that barely covered her midriff, and being extremely ambitious, Savanna had been the first to make her move on Thorne when all of them first met, caressing his jaw with a possessiveness that made him go rigid and stiff. Her giggles cut through the air at his reaction, her laughter filled with warmth and excitement, and Thorne had barely enough time to introduce himself to the next girl with savanna swooning over him.  
Claudia was shorter than Savanna by a head, and she had big eyes that took up most of her face, along with full golden brown lips that made the flecks of gold in her irises pop. Her hair was a light purple and had strands of gems that protruded from various parts of her scalp, and glittered every time she turned her face. She had pale skin that made her seem translucent in the bluish white light that echoed in the Rampion, and he liked the way that she didn't glamour herself to look as tan or as tall as the other girls. And even though she looked hungrily towards Thorne, he could tell that she wasn't one to chase after men, and kept a respectful distance between them.  
But when he turned to Vivian. Holy ace of spades. She was drop dead divine. Her hair was a glossy black color that faded to silver as it made its way down her beautiful body.  
Her waist was paper thin, and for some odd reason, her skin was a sage green color that was somehow really attractive. She wore that color well, still colored exquisitely, and Thorne assumed that dying your skin was some kind of normality on Luna. He moved on to examine her outfit, she wore a shirt that read "Wicked" in bright gold colors, on a white tank top that was tucked under her jacket worn around her waist.

She had large copper eyes and a pale lipstick that contrasted her complexion perfectly. In fact, Vivian was so beautiful that Thorne couldn't turn his head away, too intrigued to pay any attention to anything else. She walked over to him, and her eyes spelled danger, the glint came as a warning that things were going to escalate pretty fast, but with Cress by his side, he felt like he could do anything, so, with much difficulty, he looked away from Vivian. Forcing himself to examine Beckett.  
Beckett was, by anyone's standards, pretty handsome. He had a brown, curly natural color of hair, looking strangely plain next to the exotic looks of the girls standing next to him. Beckett also had deep ocean blue eyes that were almost like mirrors, reflecting everything in the room. It made Thorne slightly uncomfortable that he was about a foot taller than him, and extremely muscular. The Braun of the group. He wasn't one to talk a lot, but he was good with carrying the boxes of antidote down to Luna's docs.  
It hadn't been long after their introduction that their work transporting the antidote from the moon to earth had begun. And even though that meant Cress would have to leave him, he was excited to have a break, enjoying some time alone with his new crew who he instantly had taken a liking to. He was initially worried that their glamour would get in the way, and they would take advantage of his weak will, but Cinder had assured him that this would not be possible with their new spine manipulation preventers that had been installed while they were still on Luna, also it was very unlikely that they would either way, because they were from the middle sectors that were slightly more privileged than the outers, but suffered by the hand of Levana none the less.

Now, now Cress was not by his side. She wasn't even at the top of Thorne's list of most important people to remember, outshined by Savanna, and Claudia, and... Spades Vivian's coppery eyes were sparkling in the bright lights of the Rampion's dining room, and he gazed up at her, trying to remember his name. She scooted closer, and his eyebrows shot up in anticipation.

She grabbed the bottle out of his grasp and maneuvered his hand to wrap around her waist. And then, they were slow dancing to the music, music that he had downloaded for an occasion such as this. He leaned closer and her breath enveloped him, smelling suspiciously alcohol free, and instead overwhelming him with vanilla and mint. They were so close together that he had to strain to look down at her perfect lips that glittered in the light. But she backed away much too quickly, and grabbed him by the front of his shirt before baiting him out of the kitchen, and into the med bay.

And she closed the door. And pressed him against a wall. And then she was nudging his nose to the side as she leaned in and gave him the most passionate kiss he had ever received in his entire life. And she was slowly twisting her fingers in the hair at the base of his neck, and he had his hands buried in her beautiful long black hair. And they danced while she pressed him into the wall and fell deeper into his embrace.

"Thorne," she whispered between kisses, and his heart hiccupped at the way she said his name. "Carswell Thorne," like a song, her voice sang his name. And they stayed that way, their bodies entwined.

"Vivian," he whispered back to her before she leaned back and allowed them both a breath of fresh air.  
"What do you know about Queen Selene?" She asked once they had resumed their kissing.

He drew back, the question catching him off guard. But she was quick to recover, and pressed her face close to his.

"I know you were friends with her during the revolution, I'm merely trying to learn more about our new monarch, I think I can respect her more if I know a thing or two about her," Thorne could barely think while she was pressing kisses onto his collarbone, but he managed to form a coherent response after collecting his thoughts.  
"Cinder," he breathed, trying to recall the months they had been together.

"Cinder. She's a great leader, she really is perfect to rule Luna, she's the strongest person I know, no doubt going to make a great queen," Vivian growled at his response.  
"What are her strengths," she asked quickly, closing her eyes to listen to his response, and rocking back and forth in a way that made Thorne's stomach backflip.  
"Well, I guess she's good at glamouring people, she once tortured Sybil Mira, Levana's head thaumaturge, to the point of insanity. And shooting things. She shot a least a hundred wolf soldiers during the war with the little gun in her finger. She also has a port screen inside of her head, which makes her like, what, the smartest person alive? And I suppose she's good at being sarcastic. Scratch that, she is fantastic at being sarcastic," Thorne concluded, scratching his chin.

"And what are her weaknesses?" She asked him, resuming their kissing with a new passion. But something was wrong. Thorne could tell she was growing desperate for answers.

"Why do you care?" He asked, taking a step away. She pulled him closer, testing his willingness to comply.

"I'm just wondering. What harm could curiosity do? The sign of a good leader is being able to humbly display their strengths. But more than that, they must be able to accept their weaknesses." She licked her lips hungrily, and then Thorne felt her hand raising his shirt over his torso, but he shoved it back down, resisting her temptations.  
"I guess, Cinder doesn't really like it when people discuss her weaknesses."

"Come on Carswell, I'm not going to tell anyone," he flinched at how easily she used his name, and recoiled. A look of hurt flashed through her eyes at the sudden gap between them, but he didn't want to hurt her. He so desperately wanted her to smile again, so he gave into her pressure.

"Well ok, I guess there's nothing that you can really do with the information. So Cinder's weaknesses right, she has this control panel in the back of her head and…" He trailed off, gulping as she traced her fingers down his neck.

"Go on," Vivian urged

"Right, well because she is made up of mechanics and wires and stuff, the control panel controls her entire system, so shut it off, and bingo, she's as vulnerable as an earthen." Vivian's face lit up, and Thorne was suddenly glad he pleased her.

"Anything else?" Her words prompted him to continue speaking.

"Cinder is extremely loyal to her friends, that's probably her biggest weakness, because she can't stand when someone gets hurt. She takes responsibility for everything that happens. And Emperor Kaito, she'd be a wreck if anything happened to him." He summed up, smiling down at her as she pressed one last kiss firmly against his lips.  
"Thank you captain, your information has been most helpful," she said and turned to leave. All of a sudden, he felt a connection snap between them, like a thread that held two pieces of fabric together, being severed. He felt weaker, and Cinder's words on how these Lunars could no longer use their gifts, did little to console him, because if he was right, Vivian had just used her mind magic to seduce him into trusting her, and then… and then, Thorne had no idea, he couldn't remember their last conversation. Everything was fuzzy. Her lips were the only thing that came to mind, but other than the utter desire to please her, which was still lingering in his head.

Something nagged at his brain until he was forced to recede from the room like it were the scene of a crime. Because at times like these, Thorne really wished that he had a brain.

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 **I'm sorry to leave you at a cliffhanger. Oh wait, never mind, muahahah this is fun.**


	4. The Tin Man

**Hey Guys haven't posted in a while, hope you like this one!**

Cinder's heart plummeted as the view of new Beijing entered her vision. It really was beautiful, but everything about it unsettled her, from the glint of sunlight that burst from every roof, to the small hedges that littered the earth, to the people who freckled the streets. It made her insides dip and sag with the weight of anxiety and stress.

She could see, laid out in front of her, all of the apartment complex buildings that sat so cramped together on the streets, every hover that glided through the air, every black haired, fair skinned citizen that went about their day as if nothing at all were happening. But Cinder knew better, there was a war raging, not on earth, not even on the moon, but inside her head.

She was at war with her conscience on how to handle this situation. Obviously, playing hard to get was not an option, for all she knew, Kai might have already moved on, maybe he had even forgotten that the queen of the moon ever even been a love interest.

Making it look like she was seeing someone else would probably be even worse, and despite her resentment towards Kai for demanding so much of her, she could not even dream about stooping so low as to making him jealous after the pain she had already caused. This was not going to be easy. She would have to make the right impression if she ever wanted a peace treaty between The Eastern Commonwealth and Luna.

The safest thing to do was act neutral, see how Kai responded, and mirror him. Come to think of it, she seemed to follow that advice a lot.

And her feelings towards Kai… Her feelings did not matter. She was not ready to make that commitment, and a boyfriend right now, on top of managing the stress that came as a package deal with a country, was just not going to happen. She was going to have to manage with merely a political relationship with the emperor of the eastern commonwealth. She would watch him throughout the rest of her life, him producing an heir with a beautiful girl that was not Cinder. Him raising a family, without Cinder, and him, loving another, who was not Lunar, or cyborg, or as faulty as Cinder had always been.

She buried her head in her arms and groaned. A deep, frustrated, complicated groan.

She wondered if it was too late to turn back, she could easily fake a sudden sickness that deemed her too weak to proceed with the journey, but she didn't want to seem frail. Especially not in front of Kai, with whom she was determined to prove that independency was working out perfectly fine for her, thank you very much.

She had already thought out the idea of using Iko as a representative at the ball instead of actually showing up, but it would make her seem embarrassed of her decisions. It also made her sick to think that hiding from her fears would be something that Levana would have done. And she was NOT her aunt, she would never be that way, she would confront her trials head on, not hiding behind a veil. So she finally concluded that she would come to the ball, and if not to visit Kai, to see her other friends who she so desperately missed.

The palace was now visible below her, and she could make out the coral colored roof and pristine walls, and a thin, curvy line that led up to the palace. On closer inspection, Cinder realized that this line was familiar, sending her thoughts back to the old pumpkiny, orange car that had transported her to the ball, so many nights ago. It was strange to think about that night, after everything that happened, back when she still had no idea of her identity, when Kai still thought of her as the harmless mechanic that was easy to talk to, when Luna seemed so far away, yet so intimidating.

Now she was no longer afraid of the moon, she had abolished that nightmare. So why was she still forgetting to breath every time she thought about confronting Kai? Why was the power hungry, deadly Levana suddenly sounding like a pleasant alternative to seeing Ka's face in person again? Surely meeting Kai couldn't be as bad as she made it out to be, and yet, she was still fighting desperately to keep down her breakfast as they neared their destination.

Every nerve burned inside of her, but then, a cold sweat came crashing over her, and they instantly turned to ice. Her brain was flashing her warnings, telling her that increased amounts of an unknown substance was pumping through her, that she was overheating, and then she was suddenly freezing, then overheating again. She pushed these thoughts away, not caring about deadly toxins invading her blood. In fact, she might choose the deadly toxin if it meant not having to leave this space ship.

Drowning in her own anxiety, Cinder played with her hair for something to do as she noticed New Beijing come into focus around her. Iko had originally styled it into a neat braid, woven around the top of her head like a crown, but the hair was used to being free, and falling naturally of it's own accord, so it was not quick to comply with Iko's stiff hair products. It now was spilling over the top of the braid, parts of it slipping out of their bobby pins and cocooning her face and neck. It was only until recently that she had realized that her hair was twice the original length as when she had started the revolution; the stress of ruling a kingdom seemed to make it grow at a much faster rate. Now, it fell down to the small of her back, not to mention, that the environment of Luna seemed to be tinting her hair, so it now was 2 shades lighter.

She vaguely wondered what Kai would think of it now, but something told her that he was beyond caring about what her hair looked like.

In the back of her head, the world was going fuzzy. Her thoughts became more and more distant as the clock on her portscreen notified her of the eminent arrival at new beijing palace in approximately five minutes. She could almost feel the ship falling towards the landing pad, every sudden movement made her jump.

She looked out the window again, her vision was almost level with the cherry tree beside their destination.

From her view of the palace's front entrance, she could see a black smudge of hair inching closer and closer towards them, and she didn't even need her net screen to tell her who it was, but nonetheless, the words emperor Kaito of the eastern commonwealth flashed across her vision. This news sent her insides into another whirl of nerves, but not before she noticed another form, appearing at his side. At first she guessed it to be Konn Torin, Kai's royal advisor, but it was not so, if it was Torin, her scanner would have immediately recognized him. Her curiosity almost made her temporarily forget her dread.

But then, it came back, full force as she realized that this figure walking closely by Kai to meet the Lunars was a girl. And she was drop dead gorgeous.

She had waist length black silky hair, and soft eyes, with the longest lashes that Cinder had ever seen. Her waist was so thin, and her legs so sunkissed, that she looked misplaced here, like she belonged on a net drama. As they came closer, from her window, Cinder could see the girl say something to Kai. And then, to Cinder's horror and disbelief, Kai let out a loud laugh. She could almost hear it, though she knew the ship's exterior was soundproof.

He _had_ moved on. Cinder was sure of it. He had forgotten all about the cyborg. The mechanic. The queen of the moon. She could feel the invisible wall that she had built around her emotions crumble and burst with this sudden, unexpected blow.

Her vision began to blur, and her head throbbed with the most painful ache she had ever experienced. The stress of this moment was too much, and she fell over in pain and frustration, and curled into a ball on the ground under the window, begging the headache to depart and her stress to alleviate. A knock on her door was the only thing that brought her back to reality. Because soon, she would have to leave this space ship and face what she dreaded the most.

Iko walked in looking chipper as ever.

"Hello Cinder," She chirped, pulling Cinder to her feet as if it were perfectly normal to be crouching on the ground, and quivering in panic. "We've landed, if you hadn't noticed," Iko said in Cinder's absence for words. Cinder continued to stay silent. And, finally, deciding that this was bound to happen anyways, she walked, lopsided, towards the door, with Iko in her wake, fidgeting with her hair.

The walk down the hallway and into the loading bay was the longest walk she had ever had. She was sluggish, and clumsy, and stumbled a few times to draw out these last moments of peace that she had.

When she finally arrived at the ramp, that had gradually started to descend, Cinder had completely composed herself into what she hoped, looked like a queenly posture.

She would handle this with elegance and grace, like a true leader. Dimly aware of the guards positioned around her, she took her first step into the brilliantly bright sunlight.

And she could see the tips of his messy black hair, appearing over the top of the ramp. Then his chocolate eyes, looking coldly in her direction, and then his lips which were formed into a fake smile, and his outfit, that was formal and pristine. And she gave him a cold smile as well, reminding herself to mirror him, and not to say or do anything drastic.

She dismissed the warnings that plagued her vision, wrapped one arm around Kinney's, and stepped off the ship. The tension was immediately overwhelming. She could feel Kai's subtle frustration, every emotion that was going on in his brain was coming back to her through his bio electricity. He was good at schooling his emotions, but Cinder could see the truth. He was angry. At Cinder. And there was another emotion mixed in with the hate, and to Cinder's surprise, it was a deep fondness, not directed towards her, but to the girl standing next to him. This made Cinder's blood boil.

And then, the tension broke as Iko ran forward out of the crowd of Lunar guards and ambassadors, and sprang to place her arms around Kai's neck and kiss both of his cheeks, and then hug him as he fell out of his sudden shock at this unexpected show of affection. He was still looking coldly at Cinder though, over Iko's kisses and hugs

"Kai!" She yelled happily, planting a firm kiss on his mouth, and to Cinder's glee, received a loathful look from the girl standing next to him.

"Hello Iko," Kai smiled, and wrapping one arm around Iko's waist, he turned back to face his guests.

There was silence again, and then in his deep emperor voice, Kai said "Well Queen Cinder, we hope you had a pleasurable travel down to earth," She immediately despised the formality, and she had to urge her face muscles to stop glaring in his direction.

"Yes, yes of course, it was quite enjoyable," Cinder snapped. And then a wave of emotions crashed over her. And exhaustion caught up to her, and she leaned on Kinney more and more, trying to stop her knees from buckling.

"It is very sweet of you to extend your invitation to me, I think Lunar's finest ambassadors and I will quite find your palace enchanting." She said strongly, putting on a warm smile.

Kai looked, if possible, angrier, every second they stood, looking at each other. "Yes of course, it is my deepest wish that you find comfort in your stay. As you are already aware from our invitation, the ball will take place on the seventeenth, and then you are free to stay or depart of your own accord."

"Yes, I am well aware," she said, finding it harder and harder to keep from lashing out at him. "Have the other guests arrived yet?" she asked him desperately wishing Thorne to appear and break the tension with a joke.

"No, they are scheduled to arrive tomorrow afternoon." There was another silence before Kai clasped his hands together. "Well enough formality, let me introduce to you the lady Jade. She and her family were attacked by wolf soldiers from Luna during the war, and unfortunately, Jade and her brother were the only ones able to get out alive. She has been staying here at the palace in the time being, and will join us at the ball, is that ok?" he asked, but instinct told Cinder this was not really a negotiable topic.

It took all of her willpower not to say no, but she managed to work a small yes from around her gritted teeth. So she was a personal guest. She would also probably be Kai's partner at the peace festival, and Cinder would take the backseat.


End file.
